Innovating for Cash

nnovatinq

for

Cash by James R Andrew and Harold L Sirkin There are several ways to bring a new product to market. If you're not looking at all of them, odds are you're leaving big money on the table.

76

HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW

A

LITTLE OVER THREE DECADES AGO, Bruce Hender-

son, the Boston Consulting Group's founder, warned managers, "The majority of products in most companies are cash traps. They will absorb more money forever than they will generate." His apprehensions were entirely justified. Most new products don't generate substantial financial retums despite companies' almost slavish worship of innovation. According to several studies, between five, and as many as nine, out often new products end up being financial failures. Even truly innovative products ofren don't make as much money as organizations invest in them. Apple Computer, for instance, stopped mal